Sauce-O-Magic

This is a great salad, especially for those lazy and less hungry warm days or nights, because it’s a meal in one that won’t leave you feeling stuffed and gasping for air after you’ve eaten.

For the Rub:

50g whole coriander spice

25g peppercorns

50g mustard seeds

30g coarse salt

15g paprika

For the Salad:

two pieces of matured sirloin steak, weighing in at about 200g each.

800g baby potatoes, cooked

50g chopped onions

30g chopped capers

50g chopped anchovies

30g chopped parsley

90g olives, pips removed and quartered

olive oil

freshly squeezed lemon juice

coarse sea salt

black pepper

First up, combine all the rub spices you need in your trusty mortar and pestle and give it a good bashing. Generously rub the ground spices into the meat until coated and leave to rest in the fridge for a couple of hours. Once your braai is ready and your guests are getting hungry, whack the sirloin onto your braai-grid (hot coals) and grill on an open flame for about seven minutes a side. You want the meat to be medium rare. While the steaks are sizzling, it’s time to start combining the salad – but remember to keep one eye on the meat! Crush the cooked potato using the palm of your hand. You just want the skin to break open and to crush the potato slightly – try not to flatten it completely…it’s not a pancake-potato salad. Add the chopped onions, capers, anchovies, parsley and olives. Drizzle with olive oil, a generous squeeze of lemon and cracked black pepper. You can add salt if you want, but taste it first – the anchovies are very salty.

Mix the salad thoroughly then scoop into plates. Once the meat is done, let it rest for a few minutes then slice it into about 1cm thick slices. Put a couple of slices of that deliciously juicy sirloin on top of the potato salad and you’re done.

Sometimes the secret to the perfect plate of food is the sauce. Very often sauce is to meat, what ‘the little black dress’ is to a woman or ‘the perfect biltong knife’ is to a man…absolutely essential. The right sauce & meat combination enhances flavours, wakes up the taste buds and makes lips smack together in surprise.

Most of these are done in the kitchen, but are an essential part of the braai.

Jar-O-Mustard

Forget about those branded squeeze bottles filled with MSG and, let’s be honest…mostly taste like plastic. Make this sauce once and you’ll never look back. This is a sweet mustard with a nice tang that you can use to juzz up boerierolls, burgers, sandwiches or pork dishes.

You’ll Need:

8 teaspoons of mustard powder

4 tablespoons sugar

a pinch of salt

4 tablespoons boiling water

4 egg yolks

2 tablespoons vinegar

If you’ve ever made a Hollandaise sauce, this should be a breeze. The process is very similar.

Mix together the mustard powder, sugar, salt and boiling water. In a separate bowl whisk the egg yolks and vinegar, then combine the mustard and egg mixture in a glass or tin bowl. Bring a pot of water to the boil (filled about half way) and balance the glass bowl on top. If the mixture gets too hot, the eggs might scramble, so work carefully (and remove it from the heat and keep stirring if you need to stop the sauce from scrambling). Stir until the sauce is thick, then mix in a tablespoon of butter while the mustard is still warm. Scoop it into a nifty sterilised jar and store away in your fridge. It will keep for a couple of weeks…but then again, it’s so lekker it might not.

Pot-O-Chutney

This is a chunky and sweet tomato chutney. You can either roast the tomatoes on the braai or in the oven – whatever tickles your fancy.

You’ll Need:

Almost 1kg baby tomatoes (halved) with skins on

olive oil

balsamic vinegar

cracked black pepper

fresh basil leaves

1 onion, finely chopped

a couple of cloves of garlic, crushed and chopped

a chunk of ginger, peeled and grated

3 red chillies, seeds removed and finely chopped

coarse sea salt to taste

2 – 3 tablespoons brown sugar

Pre-heat oven to 200°C. Put the sliced baby tomatoes on a roasting tray (flesh side up) and drizzle with olive oil a couple of splashes of balsamic vinegar. Sprinkle with black pepper and fresh basil leaves and pop it in the oven. Bake for about 20 minutes or until the tomatoes are soft and juicy.

While the tomatoes are on the go, grab a non-stick pan, add a splash of olive oil, and then the chopped onion, chilli and garlic and fry until the onion is cooked through. When the tomatoes are cooked (and cooled down) chop it up and add it to the onion. Now add about half a cup of balsamic vinegar, crushed sea salt and about 2 – 3 tablespoons brown sugar. Simmer for 15 minutes until thickened up. Allow to cool then scoop it into jars and keep it in your fridge. The longer the chutney stands for, the more the flavour will develop.

Boozy Sauce

This is a great sauce served with venison or any red meat. Plus it’s a great excuse to have a glass of red wine before lunchtime.

You’ll Need:

1 onion – chopped

a knob of butter

two cups of easy drinking red wine (one for the sauce and one for yourself)

150ml good quality beef stock

50ml cream

salt and black pepper

Take a non-stick pan, add the butter and once it has melted drop in the onions. Slowly cook the onions on a low heat until soft and buttery. Next add the garlic, stir it around then pour in the red wine. Let the sauce simmer until it’s reduced by half, then add the beef stock and reduce the sauce again. Lastly add the cream, let it bubble away gently for about five minutes, then add salt and pepper to taste. Serve warm, either drizzled over a decent steak or any kind of venison, or put it on the table let your friends scoop some out of a bowl for themselves. (If they’re like my friends, one of them will probably end up licking out the bowl).

Barbeque Sauce

This is a great basting sauce (think steaks, burgers, ribs and wings). It’s so simple to make I urge you to make your own version and keep it in a sealed bottle in your fridge.

You’ll Need:

30 ml chutney

30 ml tomato sauce

15 ml worcester sauce

15 ml canola oil

5 ml vinegar

2 ml salt

2 ml black pepper

5 ml mustard powder

5 ml mixed herbs

Simply mix all the ingredients together, pour it into a re-sealable glass bottle and you’re done.